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Jean Krämer: Architect

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Jean Krämer (1886–1943) was Atelierchef in Peter Behrens’ studio, in which the architects Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius and Le Corbusier also worked. This incubator of modernity is now comprehensively illuminated by the hitherto unknown documents of Jean Krämer’s daughter. Krämer’s extensive independent work is also significant within the history of modern architecture. Krämer’s buildings, such as the ‘Streetcar City’ in Wedding and the now reconstructed Traffic Tower on Potsdamer Platz, placed their urbanistic stamp on the Berlin of the 1920s. From today’s perspective, Krämer’s architecture is relevant because he wanted a different, more imaginative modernity that would not disown the city’s multi-layered history. He created buildings with individual expression that could react to their urban context. Like Peter Behrens, he was a comprehensive creator of furniture design and typography, as well as whole urban developments. Since he also sought decorative and playful solutions that did not fit the canon of purist Bauhaus modernity, he has until now been overlooked by the history of architecture.

Jean Krämer (1886–1943) was Atelierchef in Peter Behrens’ studio, in which the architects Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius and Le Corbusier also worked. This incubator of modernity is now comprehensively illuminated by the hitherto unknown documents of Jean Krämer’s daughter. Krämer’s extensive independent work is also significant within the history of modern architecture. Krämer’s buildings, such as the ‘Streetcar City’ in Wedding and the now reconstructed Traffic Tower on Potsdamer Platz, placed their urbanistic stamp on the Berlin of the 1920s. From today’s perspective, Krämer’s architecture is relevant because he wanted a different, more imaginative modernity that would not disown the city’s multi-layered history. He created buildings with individual expression that could react to their urban context. Like Peter Behrens, he was a comprehensive creator of furniture design and typography, as well as whole urban developments. Since he also sought decorative and playful solutions that did not fit the canon of purist Bauhaus modernity, he has until now been overlooked by the history of architecture.